BIO
I was born in 1980 and grew up in Salinas, California. The second I heard Dizzy Gillespie at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1989, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Then I heard Miles Davis’ Four & More and that pretty much sealed it.
I practiced obsessively and eventually got a scholarship to the New England Conservatory of Music. While I was there, I studied with Steve Lacy, Danilo Perez, George Garzone, and John McNeil, along with classical composition with Michael Gandolfi. I still love that school.
After graduating, I moved to Los Angeles in 2004 and I’ve been here ever since. I’ve been lucky to work with a lot of amazing musicians and artists over the years, including Gladys Knight, Steven Tyler, LeAnn Rimes, Trombone Shorty, David Foster, Jill Scott, Faith Evans, Gerald Albright, Dave Koz, Johnny Mathis, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Vince Gill, Andrea Bocelli, Chris Botti, Mindi Abair, Paula Cole, Lyle Lovett, Keb’ Mo’, M83, Burt Bacharach, Adele, and Katy Perry.
When I first got to LA, I played a lot of weddings and Top 40 gigs—just trying to make it work. Then in 2006 I went on the road as the musical director for Blood, Sweat & Tears. That was an experience.
A year later, Clint Eastwood asked me to be the featured trumpet soloist on Changeling, starring Angelina Jolie. The soundtrack was nominated for a Golden Globe. Clint used to play trumpet himself, and one day he told me, “You play like a singer.” That’s still one of the nicest compliments I’ve ever received.
After Changeling, Clint asked me back to be the soloist on Invictus, his film about Nelson Mandela. I learned a lot from him—not just about music, but about simplicity, confidence, and trusting your instincts.
In 2010 I released my first record, Fractured. It was a pretty adventurous album, and I wasn’t sure how people would react to it. So getting a great review from Robert Christgau in The Village Voice meant a lot to me. Somehow he heard exactly what I was trying to do.
My second album, Introducing Gabriel Johnson, came out in 2012 and was produced by Erin Davis, Miles Davis’ son and my manager at the time. The week before the album was released, I played a solo on The Tonight Show with Placido Domingo. After the performance, Jay Leno walked back to the couch and reintroduced me to the audience. He didn’t have to do that, but he did. I’ve never forgotten it.
That record was a chance for me to combine everything I love—jazz, D’Angelo, hip hop, beat-making, improvisation—and I’m really glad I made it.
Touring was great, but in 2014 my daughter was born, and I decided to slow things down for a while. I wasn’t about to miss that. I kept working, kept writing, and kept exploring new ideas.
From 2017 to 2021, I was the featured soloist on the Showtime series The Chi, improvising all of the trumpet parts for the show.
In 2021, I released ten records. It was an intense year, but I think some of my best playing is on those albums. I learned a lot about melody—how one melody can contain another, and how sometimes the best ideas happen when you stop forcing them and let them appear.
In 2022, I served as executive producer alongside David Foster on Chris Botti’s Blue Note debut, Volume 1.
Over the years I’ve released more than twenty albums covering everything from straight-ahead jazz to electronica, hip hop, and ambient music. I’ve never been interested in staying in one place musically.
My philosophy comes from Miles Davis, who said:
“It’s not about standing still and becoming safe. If anybody wants to keep creating, they have to be about change.”
I’m still trying to live up to that.
Later,
G
